31. Griffin
Chapter 31
Griffin
You Live On An Orchard?
I was whistling as I took Elmer out for his morning constitution.
The grass had a touch of frost on it from the overnight. Central New York was as mercurial as the woman I was going to marry.
Yep. I was definitely going to marry her.
If she thought I love you was enough for me, she was sorely mistaken. However, it was one step at a time, especially with this woman.
I checked my phone for messages. Nothing from Beckett yet, but there were a number of emails I had to deal with for the summer concerts. I replied to an email from Bridger, apologizing that I’d disappeared after his set.
Could that have been another thing in this ridiculous turn of events that had been happening around us? Or just a coincidence?
Whatever it was, I had definitely flaked when it came to locking him down for the summer lineup. May was right around the corner. The first show would be for Memorial Day weekend.
I had a lock on at least two acts, but I needed to bug Laverne and see if we could get Oblivion, or part of Oblivion, or maybe even Ian Kagan for one of the bigger attractions. With the taproom in limbo, I might need to get more creative.
As I finished my email, a text from Baron came up.
Baron:
Where the hell are you? You live on the orchard?
I sure do. Calling.
“Yo.”
“What the hell are you doing in New York?”
“I’ll be there in four minutes. If my GPS isn’t lying.”
“Once you turn into the orchard, follow the road past the Lodge, the stores, and up a steep hill. Hope you didn’t rent a shit car.”
“I have a sports car.”
“Pray for your undercarriage. I’m outside, can’t miss me.”
“Great.”
Baron hung up.
I shook my head and shoved my phone back into my pocket. To kill time, I ran around with Elmer until he dropped onto his back, his tongue out as he panted.
“Pathetic, pal.”
He grinned with that wide, crazy mouth and just kept on panting.
The sound of a gunning engine made Elmer roll and struggle up. Both of us walked to the end of the drive. An electric blue Shelby convertible inched its way up the steep, pitted road. Baron’s short hair ruffled in the early morning breeze. He had on mirrored aviator sunglasses and the ancient denim shirt he always wore.
He parked and got out. “How, man?” He held out his arms. Lean and built like a runner, nothing had changed on one of my best friends.
At least he had been.
Until Irene.
“My half brother fell in love with this place. I did too.”
Baron dropped his arms. “Wild, man.” He was tall and tanned, even more than his Puerto Rican blood promised. He glanced down at Elmer. “A dog?”
“Baron, meet Elmer.”
He took off his sunglasses and tucked them in his shirt pocket. “Orchard, dog, and...” He looked beyond me and whistled, low and long. “A girl.”
I glanced over my shoulder. Lennon stood in the doorway, her messy braid over her shoulder, my hoodie on and nothing but long coffee and cream legs.
“Try a woman. C’mon, you should meet her.”
Baron moved closer to me, pitching his voice low. “Maybe we should talk first.”
I frowned. “What the hell is going on?”
“A fucking lot.”
“I don’t keep stuff from Lenny.”
His eyebrows shot up. “A woman that gorgeous is named Lenny?”
I laughed. “Lennon Hathaway.”
“Damn, son. She’s a smokeshow.”
“Watch how you talk about my future wife.”
He shook his head. “Yeah, maybe I better get back in the car and start over. This can’t be the right Griffin.”
“Afraid so. And whatever you have to say, you can say in front of her.”
“It’s not good, my friend. Not sure you want to tangle her up in it.”
I rubbed my sternum. “Did something happen to Marc?”
“Kind of.”
“What do you mean, kind of?”
“There’s no easy way to say it.”
“Then just spit it out.” I laced my fingers behind my head. “Did he finally do too many of those exotic drugs he likes so much?”
“No. Well, not this week, anyway. He’s into mushrooms these days. The more psychedelic, the better. Which is probably how it happened.” He crouched down to Elmer. “Hey, buddy.”
Elmer’s eyes rolled back as Baron gave him a hearty rub.
“I like the dog,” he said, as he stood up. “Let’s see if I like the girl.”
“You call her girl again, and she’ll probably deck you.”
“I like her already.”
We climbed the last of the incline of my driveway to the patio. Lennon was gone, but she had left the door cracked open. Elmer trailed behind us, sniffing around the weeds pushing through the gravel.
“You live in a box?”
“It used to be an old pressing building.”
“Do I even want to know what that is?”
“Probably not, unless you like cider.”
“Like apple juice?” he asked as he climbed the stairs behind me.
“Not quite. Hard cider—beer, but better.” I pushed the door open, and Elmer’s nails scrabbled up the steps, bumping me to the side to get inside to his water bowl.
“I’ll take your word for it.” He stepped inside and swore. “Not what I was expecting.”
“Helps that Kain is an architect. He let me have some input, like the shelves for?—”
“Your records. Finally, out of storage,” he finished for me and headed right to my collection.
The bookcase opened. Lennon came out, wearing her own clothes, these a pair of faded black jeans with a lot more rips in the knees than the ones she wore at work. Her feet were still bare, and she’d swapped my sweatshirt for a black sweater pushed up at the elbows.
She closed it behind her.
Baron gave me some serious side-eye. “Secret room? No shit.” He rerouted from the records to the bookcase. “Hi, I’m Baron Ramos.” He held out his hand for a quick shake.
“Lennon Hathaway.”
“You’re far too hot to be with the likes of my friend,” he said distractedly as he looked at the bookcase. “How’s this work?”
“Owl,” she said simply and moved toward me. She grinned at me. “Thanks, I think.”
“Huh?” Baron turned with the owl under his hand.
“That I’m too hot for Griffin.”
“Oh, you definitely are.” He pulled the owl, and the bookcase shifted inward. “Son of a bitch.” He disappeared inside to explore.
She turned to me. “You’re hotter and totally deserve me.”
I laughed. “Thanks, darlin’.” I kissed her and tasted mint and something raspberry.
“That’s damn cool. Oh, sorry.”
She reached up and rubbed her thumb along my lower lip. “Sorry, ChapStick.” She turned around, leaning against me. “It’s okay. I’m sure you’ve seen far more interesting things than kissing.”
Baron grinned, then he met my gaze. “Yeah, she’s way too cool for you. I’ll take her off your hands.”
She snickered. “Coffee?”
“God, yes,” Baron said, following.
We climbed the stairs to the kitchen table. When the coffee was passed around, Baron sat forward, wrapping his hands around his mug. “So, Marc is in a rehab place in Washington.”
“What? You said he was fine.”
“I said he was kind of fine. It’s not a drug rehab, brother. He broke both his legs in a motorcycle accident.”
“Jesus. I didn’t hear about it.”
“You wouldn’t. He’s checked in under an alias. And with a bodyguard.”
“What?” I pushed my mug away.
“Yeah, the cops wouldn’t put a guard on him, so Marc hired a guy to stay there while he’s an in-patient. He’s bionic at this point. Needed two knee replacements and a hip.”
Lennon reached for my hand and covered it.
It was hard to remember sometimes that we weren’t a unit anymore. The break had been complete after Irene’s stunt. It had been a long time coming, but I hadn’t expected what finally broke us, that was for sure.
“Why does he need a guard?”
“Because Irene tried to kill him.”
Shock had me dropping back in my seat. “The cops didn’t help?”
“They think it was just an accident, but Marc said it was on purpose.” He held up a hand when I started to talk. “I know Marc is a hot mess and out of control more than half the time, but I believe him.”
“Why?”
“Because he knows her better than any of us. Her and that damn Ducati.”
Lennon sat up straight. “Ducati?”
Baron nodded. “Yeah. She wears this black gear with?—”
“A hot pink stripe?”
Baron frowned. “Yeah.”
She turned to me. “That girl that tried to run me off the road, remember? Then she sat in my freaking common room in my apartment building. She had her stupid helmet on, but man, could it be her?”
“You’re lucky. She did that with Marc and threw a chain into his back tire, and he wiped out across a three-lane highway.”
I pulled Lennon’s chair closer to mine and rubbed her back. She leaned into me. “Did she do something to you too?”
“I can’t prove it, but some shit has happened on my ranch. But Montana isn’t Irene’s kind of place.”
“Why?” Lennon looked up at me. “How freaking crazy is this chick?”
I shook my head. “I told you what she did to me. To all of us.” I glanced at Baron, whose hands were fisted on the table.
She pulled out her phone and opened a browsing window.
“What are you doing?”
“I want to see what this Irene woman looks like.”
“Why?”
“Because...” She swiped through a few photos then popped one open. “I couldn’t swear to it, but that looks like the woman we saw in Florida watching us.”
“No. I would have recognized her.”
“She was turned away, but when I went to the bathroom after...” She cleared her throat. “Anyway, when I went to the ladies' room, she went in after me. Said some really rude shit to me about how good you are.”
“Jesus.” Baron pushed his chair back and got up.
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “And you didn’t tell me?”
“There’s weird people all the time. And we were... out there where anyone could watch us.”
Baron shot a look at me.
“Like you can talk. I don’t have a public indecency mark on my rap sheet.”
Lennon turned to me. “You have a rap sheet?”
I cleared my throat. “Not the topic.”
She tossed her phone on the table. “We’ll discuss that at a later date.”
Baron pressed his lips together, then he flipped me off.
“I don’t know if I’m being paranoid or not, but I could have sworn I saw that blond chick at the taproom last night.”
“You did?” Baron sat back down.
“Yeah. Someone locked Griffin in the storage room last night—plus, we had a fire last night.”
Baron stared at me. “And you didn’t lead with that, dude?”
“I wasn’t prepared for any of this bullshit.” I popped my knuckles until Lennon put her hand over mine. “We thought it was an accident, but it’s definitely feeling like it may not be at this point.”
“Jesus, if it’s arson, I don’t know if Kira and Beckett can get the insurance claim paid.” Lennon stood, took her cup, and went back to the coffeemaker.
“We don’t know if it was or not.” I went over to her and stood behind her, smoothing my hands up and down her arms. “Maybe I should go.”
She spun in my arms. “Go where, exactly? How are you going to get her away from here?”
“I don’t know,” I exploded. “But if I go away from here, the orchard will be safe.” I gripped Lennon’s shoulders. “What if she’s here because of me?”
“So, you think if you’re not here she’ll just stop?” Her eyes were blazing hot with anger.
“It could. I don’t want anyone getting hurt because she’s fucking unhinged. Ronnie almost died last night. What if that was you? Do you realize how much she looks like you if you just look quick?”
Her eyes widened.
“Yeah. When Justin picked her up, and her hair was in her face, it could have been you. What if Irene thought it was you?”
She pushed me back. “That’s ridiculous.”
“She almost ran you off the road.” I followed her down the steps into the living room.
“Okay, so if she’s going after me then what happens if you go? Did you think about that?” She came at me, driving me back steps until I fell onto the couch. “You don’t get to treat me like the helpless little girl. I’ve been fighting my way through life since I was born, ace. Some bitch that can’t handle her crazy isn’t going to be the one to take me out. Not when I finally found you.” Her eyes were shining with unshed tears, ripping into me.
“Darlin’...”I stood, and this time, she stumbled away from me, right into Baron.
He caught her. “Okay, let’s just calm down and think.”
Lennon paced away toward the records, resting her forehead against one of the shelves. “I’m sorry, Baron. You don’t need to see us fighting.” She turned around and rested her hip against the shelves, crossing her arms. The cool Lennon that I met my first day at the orchard was right there.
Not the one that I’d fallen in love with.
Not the one who was soft and warm with me.
I tunneled my fingers through my hair, gripping tight until my scalp sang. “Irene hasn’t come at me. Not really. That doesn’t make sense. Maybe we’re just overreacting here.”
“Irene never takes accountability for any mistake she makes. Remember how she made it look like you were the one that took advantage of her?” Baron stuffed his hands into his front pockets. “If I’d had my head on straight, I would have known what she was trying to do. You never played her games. Ever. It drove her crazy that you were immune.”
“ Immune isn’t the word,” I muttered. “She was a viper when she didn’t get her way. I wasn’t stepping into any of that mess, no matter how hard she tried to seduce me.”
“Because she doesn’t care who she hurts, man. She fucked with me and Marc all the damn time. Worse than you even know.”
Lennon pushed off the shelves and crossed to us. “Why did you guys stay?”
“I thought I loved her.” Baron sat on the couch. “When she was happy, she was a miracle. But the minute she was bored or didn’t get her way…” He shrugged. “It was like she was a different person.”
“Maybe she was,” Lennon said quietly. “From everything you’re saying, she’s a narcissist. I’ve known plenty of them in my field. Damn, they can be charming.”
“That’s her,” Baron said, then he put his head in his hands.
I squeezed his shoulder. “She played us for years. You and Marc got the brunt of it, but I was no better. I just stayed out of the way.”
“Because you weren’t led by your dick like we were.”
I glanced at Lennon. “I know what it’s like to want someone beyond sense.”
“We aren’t like her.” Lennon put her hands on her hips. “We’re our own brand of fucked-up, but we aren’t that. Get it out of your head.”
Baron peered up at me. “You definitely don’t deserve her, but I’m glad you found her.”
“Thanks, man.”
He sagged against the back of the couch. “I drove from Manhattan. I’m fucking beat.”
“You have somewhere to stay? I’m sure I can get you a room at the Lodge.”
“I was going to go to a hotel.”
“No. And we are keeping you around until we figure out what we’re going to do about Irene.” I pulled out my phone. “Just a second.”
Lennon sat next to him, and they spoke softly.
I walked to the kitchen, hitting send on the way.
“The Lodge, this is Cara, how may I help you?”
“Hey, Cara, it’s Griffin.”
“Oh, hey. How are you? We haven’t seen you around lately.”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. We know Beckett and Lennon have been keeping you busy. Oh, hey, are you okay? I heard about the fire this morning.”
“Both me and Lennon are all right. But I’m calling for another reason.”
“Sorry. The whole orchard is buzzing about it. Anyway, what can I do for you?”
“An old friend of mine is in town. I was wondering if you had any rooms available for him?”
“Oh, sure. Just one?”
“Yes.”
“What’s his name?”
I glanced over at him and quickly hit mute. “Your name or your usual?”
“Mine.”
Surprised, I unmuted the phone. “Baron Ramos.”
“Got it.” I could hear her typing away. “When does he want to check in?”
“Do you have something now? He drove a long way and wants a shower and a bed.”
“Sure. It’s still off-season. We have a few rooms open.”
“Thanks. Take care of him for me.”
“Of course.”
“Thanks.”
I hung up and crossed back to them. “Got you a room. Want me to take you over?”
Baron stood. “Nah, I saw it when I came in. Swanky place.”
I laughed. “Kind of. Lots of weddings are done here and big parties.”
“Never thought I’d see you at a place like this.”
“Wait til you see the stage.”
Baron’s face fell. “I’ve avoided concerts since...well, since that day.”
“Maybe we can change that.”
“I’m not sticking around, G.”
I walked him to the door. “I wish you would. At least for a while.”
He sighed. “I have a life in Montana.”
“Yeah? Last I knew it was you alone out there on that ranch.”
“My ranch has animals. I’m not alone.”
“All right, I understand.” I opened the door.
“But I’m going to stick for a while. Until we figure out if it was Irene or not.” He put on his sunglasses and then he was out the door and down the stairs.
I watched him walk away.
If he was right and Irene did try to hurt Marc—hell, maybe even try to kill him—what did that mean for me and Lennon?
And why?